What should I do if my anterior cervical lymph nodes are swollen?

Lymph nodes are important immune organs. The diameter of normal superficial lymph nodes in the human body is generally less than 0.5 cm. The surface is smooth, relatively soft, and not painful. Swollen lymph nodes are usually caused by inflammation. Go to the hospital for examination and symptomatic treatment in time. You can go to the internal medicine department or general surgery department. Develop good living habits in your daily life. What should I do if the anterior cervical lymph nodes are swollen? Let’s take a look at it next.

1. Swollen lymph nodes in the neck

Lymph nodes are important immune organs in the body. They are the places where antigen stimulation is received and immune responses are produced. They have filtering, proliferation and immune functions. Normal superficial lymph nodes in the human body are very small, with a diameter of less than 0.5 cm. The surface is smooth and soft, with no adhesion to the surrounding tissues and no tenderness. When the body is invaded by pathogenic factors, information is transmitted to the lymph nodes, and lymphocytes produce lymphokines and antibodies to effectively kill the pathogenic factors. The result of the "struggle" between the two is the reactive proliferation of lymphocytes and tissue cells in the lymph nodes, causing the lymph nodes to swell. Swollen lymph nodes in the neck are caused by invasion of pathogenic factors.

2. Which department should I visit for swollen lymph nodes?

Swollen lymph nodes can be checked by internal medicine. Swollen lymph nodes are mostly caused by inflammatory stimulation. Of course, some malignant diseases can also cause swollen lymph nodes. If the lymph nodes swell in a short period of time and become adherent to the surrounding tissues, and their surface is not smooth, a puncture examination is required. If none of the above conditions occur, it is probably compensatory hyperplasia. Don't worry, just try anti-inflammatory treatment.

If you have swollen lymph nodes, you can also go to the general surgery department, and then the lymphology or hematology department. This requires a lymph node puncture biopsy under color ultrasound positioning to clarify the pathological type of the lymph. If it is inflammation, anti-inflammatory treatment can be given. If it is tumor metastasis, the primary lesion must be actively identified. If it is lymphoma, the patient must be transferred to the hematology department for regular chemotherapy.

Which department is the best to visit first when you have swollen lymph nodes? In fact, there is a simplest way, which is to go to the oncology department first. Because the oncology department has certain advantages over other departments in distinguishing benign and malignant tumors and analyzing what type of malignant tumor it is. It can conduct necessary examinations based on the patient's condition and can make a clear diagnosis and provide treatment as soon as possible.

3. What should patients with swollen lymph nodes pay attention to in daily life?

If swollen lymph nodes occur in life, in addition to active examination and treatment, patients also need to pay more attention in daily life. Generally speaking, it is recommended that patients pay attention to the following points in daily life:

1. Develop good living habits, don’t stay up late, and get more rest.

2. Maintain a good attitude, stable emotions, have healthy eating habits, eat more fruits and vegetables, etc., to improve your immunity.

3. Stay away from smoke, alcohol, drugs and radiation. Pesticides, noise, volatile harmful gases, toxic and harmful heavy metals, etc. Do not eat highly irritating foods such as chili peppers.

4. Stay optimistic and in a good mood, and avoid anger, depression, and excessive thinking.

5. Exercise actively, exercise reasonably, and enhance physical fitness.

6. When you have a cold or other inflammation, it is best to use anti-inflammatory drugs in time, such as: cephalosporin, erythromycin, to prevent the condition from worsening.

Generally speaking, since lymph node enlargement involves many aspects of the problem, patients cannot arbitrarily determine which department they should go to for treatment. Instead, they should choose the department according to the type and characteristics of the disease they suffer from.